Adrien busied himself with wiping down tables with a rag he found on the counter when Nino and Alya walked into the bakery, arm-in-arm. "Morning, lovebirds."

Alya blew a raspberry at him but Nino smiled, pressing a kiss to the top of Alya's head before pulling Adrien into a side hug. Adrien had started to notice his three best friends get touchier with him recently, noticing the way he always preened after a good hug or kiss on the cheek. Whether they connected his reaction to the general lack of physical affection in his childhood, he wasn't sure, but he appreciated the hugs all the same.

Although, while Nino and Alya had been doing it for years, Marinette was… slower to the punch. Her hug this morning still had him smiling, so unexpected and wholly welcomed, and for the past couple minutes alone in the bakery it was practically all he could think about.

"Where's our girl?" Alya asked, looking behind the counter as though Mari would be hiding behind it.

"Your girl is right here," Marinette appeared in the doorway to the front of the bakery, leaning against the wall with a teasing glint in her eye.

Adrien's heart thudded in his chest. It wasn't a new experience, not when it came to Mari, but somehow it surprised him all the same.

From the moment he'd walked into the bakery and spotted her, he'd felt it. Watching her frown, tongue poking out as she iced her cupcakes in deep thought, her black hair turning almost blue in the soft lighting. Falling asleep on her feet, smudges of icing on her arm, and he still felt it.

Watching her now, taking a delicate sip from her coffee in a dress so beautiful it could only be her own creation, he felt it again.

Alya leaped forward to pull Mari in for a hug, much like Mari did for Adrien when he first arrived, while Nino nudged Adrien in his side. Without taking his eye of the young baker, Adrien spoke. "What's that for?"

"You're blushing."

"And? It's warm in here."

Adrien didn't have to look at Nino to know the DJ's eyebrows were raised. "It's February."

"We're in a bakery. Bakeries are warm," Adrien reached for the remaining coffees he'd placed on the counter and gave Nino his. "Alya, caffeine?"

"Don't mind if I do," Alya returned to grab the coffee, Mari trailing behind to settle beside Adrien.

She rested her chin on the brim of her cup, looking relaxed for the first time all morning. "I like the dress."

Well, relaxed until he opened his stupid mouth. She looked up so quickly he heard her neck crack, cheeks painted in a soft pink. "T-thanks." She tucked a stray hair behind her ear, clearing her throat to address everyone. "Thank you all so, so much for coming. I'd still be in the middle of a complete breakdown if it wasn't for you."

The three of them shook their heads good-naturedly. "We've got your back, girl," Alya assured her. "Just tell us what you need, and we're on it."

Mari's face turned from apologetic to calculating in an instant, blue eyes darting around the bakery in thought.

Adrien remembered the first few times Mari had revealed her sharp-witted nature during their friendship. For the longest time after their fateful meeting, the young girl could barely speak a word to him without breaking out into a flustered garble of words. It was frustrating at first, seeing her so comfortable with everyone else except for him, but when Adrien had told Nino he was convinced Marinette didn't want anything to do with him, Nino had laughed himself hoarse and insisted that wasn't the case.

So, Adrien kept at it, and began to make sense of Mari's stuttered speech and moments of flustered nerves. Eventually, she was able to form full sentences and didn't look utterly shocked or surprised she'd managed to do so. All of a sudden, she was able to joke, grin, shine as bright as the sun.

If Adrien valued their friendship before she could form coherent sentences around him, everything changed the first time she responded to one of his jokes by pushing him away by his nose, a playful smirk on her lips and mirth dancing in her eyes.

She'd, somehow, brought the confidence she had with everyone else into their private conversation, and it was quite possibly the greatest day of his life.

Too late, Adrien realized his three friends were staring at him expectantly. Had they been talking this whole time? Sheepishly, he rubbed the back of his neck. "Uh, what was that?"

"I said, do you have any experience in a kitchen? Nino burns cereal and Alya is more comfortable with cooking dinner than baked goods."

"Hey!" Nino said, but they paid him no mind.

"I've actually taken a few baking classes," Adrien smiled, glad his new hobby would actually be of use in this situation. "Since I quit modelling, I've had a ton of free time, so I just figured I'd try it out."

Mari nodded, still in thought, until she shook her head in surprise, eyes wide as she tarted up at him. "Quit modelling? Since when?" She shook her head harder, seemingly forcing herself to focus. "Wait. Okay, so Alya and Nino will work the front of the house. Alya knows enough about how everything works, so Nino if you have any questions, you ask her, not me. Got it?"

The couple nodded firmly, sharing a strangely charged look before Alya spoke. "So, Sunshine's on kitchen duty with you?"

Marinette was still looking up at him, blue eyes wide and waiting. "If that's okay with you?"

Like he could ever say no. "Of course it is. Let's get to work, boss."

Marinette rolled her eyes, but the smile on her face made his heart thud again. She led the way to the kitchen, Adrien trailing on her heels.

He glanced behind him at Alya and Nino to wave goodbye and wish them luck, but they were whispering conspiratorially before Nino pressed a soft kiss to Alya's forehead, all the love he felt for the fiery reporter shining in his eyes.

Adrien understood in an instant what Mari had wanted—sure, she'd felt guilty taking away their Valentine's Day, but she still wanted them to spend as much time together as they could, even if it was behind the bakery counter. She'd still found a way to be kind and giving even when asking for a favor.

The couple looked toward Adrien, who had paused in the doorway. Alya gave him a big fat wink and Nino formed a heart with his hands.

Oh. Oh.

Valentine's Day. Alya and Nino alone in the front of the bakery, leaving Adrien and Mari alone in the kitchen. For the whole day.

It clicked in an instant, what they'd done—inviting him without asking Mari, making him bring the coffee, knowing that Mari wouldn't let them be separated during the holiday.

They seemed to be waiting with bated breath to see his reaction to the scheme.

Adrien's grin turned goofy and lopsided, his mouth forming two words before he left to follow the polka-dotted beauty.

Thank you.

Author's Note –

Thanks everyone for sticking with me through this story so far! I'm having a ton of fun writing it, and I'm my updates aren't on any sort of schedule. I don't have a full plan for where this is going to end up and write when I feel inspiration, but now that summer has officially begun, I'll have more time to get some writing in and hopefully updates will be more frequent! I love anyone who bothers to read my work and I really hope you all stick around until I reach the end :)